In the early days of Covid, and right now, so many people are sad that you can feel it in the air. Instead of getting a lift from being with other people or connecting online, the sad energy can ricochet and intensify, and you can't count on anyone giving you the boost to tide you over.
Saying that many people are sad and scared—in my universe, it feels like everybody, which is maybe a symptom of how polarized our world has become—isn't to say that we're all in the same boat. /more